Though a side of music seldom explored, the ACSC Honor Band’s Saturday performance was built upon two-and-a-half days of grueling, yet gratifying, practice.
While the concert itself took place on Saturday, the ACSC Band Festival really began on Thursday, March 5, when 79 students from 8 different schools washed up on the shores of Harbor Hall. From trumpeters and trombonists to flautists and French hornists, musicians of all specialties and backgrounds showed up at Dalat, most of them for their first time, with the unified goal of making great music. Leading this melodious mishmash was Utah Valley University Director of Bands and former Dalat band director Dr. Christopher Ramos.
Some in Honor Band still had fond memories of Dr. Ramos before his 2020 departure and doctorate - in the words of trombonist Euodia Leung (12), “Dr. Ramos gave me the trombone when I was in 6th grade, and now I’ve been led down an irreversible path.” With his infectious energy and musical brilliance, it was obvious that Dr. Ramos was the perfect conductor for this ensemble.
Despite the joyful leadership of Dr. Ramos and the wide-ranging proficiencies of the students, the two-and-a-half days leading up to the concerts were no simple endeavors. With a total of about 13 hours of practice between sectionals and full rehearsals, even Honor Band’s seasoned musicians struggled to hold on till the next 15-minute break! Between the technically difficult pieces, constant calls to repeat specific parts, and Dr. Ramos’s emphasis on clear melodies and tones, each rehearsal was a brutal ordeal.
Trumpeter Youri Kang (9) recalled “barely surviving…not because I played a lot, but because I was overstimulated by the constant sound.”
Meanwhile, Euodia admitted how “your arms and fingers will start hurting by the halfway mark of your first day of rehearsal.”
Yet through every challenge, each member of Honor Band was powered by their love for music - when asked about his survival strategy for rehearsals, percussionist Wenxuan Ma simply responded, “I 'survived' my rehearsals by just enjoying the music. If you don't enjoy the music, why are you in Honor Band?”
Beyond just music, students engaged in a wide variety of activities, from a night out at Batu Ferringhi to a service project with Rohingya refugees from Spring Learning Center. Looking back, bassoonist Katie Yang (9) found the service project - a raucous mini-concert and body percussion crash course - to be her most treasured memory of the festival: “I felt that not only were we able to connect with the refugees and make them happy, but we were also able to connect with the other people in our band. It was just so fun and cool having such a service project!”
But behind the rich tones and melodies of concert day, most important were the infinitely complex and beautiful people making the music - the simple little conversations, not just the flashy bits.
Wenxuan puts it best: “My fondest memory from ACSC was sitting and talking with the other percussionists during rehearsals without Dr. Ramos noticing.”
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